I miss fresh green vegetables. So Meer and I decided to make a trip to the Gressier market to do some shopping. The market is open three days a week: Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.
 |
| Meer and Makendy in the Gressier market |
There is another, bigger market on alternate days (Monday, Wednesday, and Friday) in Léogâne. Gressier is closer. So Tuesday morning, Meer and I went with Makendy to the Gressier market. We climbed into the Everest about 7:45 and Makendy drove down to the main road, National Highway 2. The market is only about a five minute drive away. Christmas music was coming from the radio. Makendy had his favorite radio station on, Alleluia FM. Strange to hear Christmas music when the temperature is in the 80s and climbing up to 90F.
Makendy parked the Everest in front of an abandoned Catholic Church and we carefully made our
 |
| Charcoal vendor |
way across the busy highway (only two lanes wide but traffic is crazy here). The Gressier market extends up a narrow street. There are stands and vendors on both sides. There are people everywhere and motorcycle taxis driving up and down the street. It is noisy. The market seems to extend forever. The road turns and the market continues. People are carrying things and selling things as they walk down the street. In some sections, sellers appear to be clustered by the goods they are selling.
 |
| Dry goods for sale |
There is a grouping of people selling charcoal; people selling clothes; sandals and shoes. There are stands with dry goods of all sorts. There is bread, sacks of rice, beans laid out on the ground or on
 |
| Gressier market |
burlap sacks. There are chicken parts spread out in the early morning sun, flies hovering around and hopping on and off the chicken.
 |
| Chicken parts for sale in the Gressier market |
 |
| Gressier market |
And in certain places, there were mounds of trash.
We looked for vegetables and saw plenty of the same things. That is one of the problems here. Everyone grows the same things and tries to sell them to people who grow the same stuff.
 |
| Vegetables for sale, Gressier market |
Potatoes and carrots, hot peppers, a sort of Haitian apricot, and garlic. There is little variety. However, we did find carrots, onions, eggplant, green beans, and green peppers. I also bought a sort of yellow squash. At least, I hope it is a squash. Maybe I’ll make a ratatouille this weekend.
We wanted fresh fruits. I saw lots of bananas but not the little sweet ones we had in Baradères. What were they called? Tit malice, that’s it. Makendy asked the vendor. No, no tit malice today. Meer picked out some mandarins and negotiated a price through Makendy. Bargaining is part of the process of buying things in Haiti. The price for six mandarins is 50 goudes? Ask if they will take 30. If the price is 10 goudes, ask for 7. Something like that. Or ask for one or two more items for the price they asked.
 |
| Meer picking out some vegetables |
Last week, Meer bought a nine-pound red snapper at the fish market. It had been caught only hours before. He and Solomon had fish for dinner and froze the rest. Today, Meer thawed out the snapper and he will make a fish dinner for us tonight. We’ll have rice and vegetables with it. I can’t wait. Last night’s dinner in the dining hall was rice, polenta and red beans and gravy. I had a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch this afternoon. I feel a little hungry right now. Looking forward to dinner.
No comments:
Post a Comment